The King Has Made an Order, and We Are to Sail to the Nearest Harbour

By noon, we saw the english shore gleam ghostly white through the flying reek in front. But by then, so fierce was the north easter howling that though we went to windward and off again, doing all that good seamen could,. now, stealing a spell ahead and anon losing it amid a blinding squall. After a long time of this, our captain came to me where i leant watchful against the mast, and said, the king has made an order. As you will know, all vessels from france are to sail for his town of dover there and nowhere else on pain of a fine That would go near to swamp such as we